History

1971
The company was founded in 1971 under the name Schablonentechnik Kufstein GmbH (STK). It started with the production of printing sleeves for the textile, carpet and wallpaper printing industry. The company quickly expanded and by 1978, it had grown to a staff of 70, with exports exceeding 70%.

1978
A separate research and development department was established and the STK-jet-procedure was initiated. As a result of worldwide standardization of screen production, licensed knowledge transfers with companies in the U.S.A., Turkey, the former U.S.S.R. and P.R. China took place.

1987
Our development of laser engraving in 1987 was the ultimate international breakthrough, not just for the company but for the entire textile industry. This revolutionary engraving system reduced the costs for the designing procedure by 40% in one sudden blow. Thus, the beginning of the digitalisation of an entire industry took form. The State of Austria honoured this achievement by awarding STK with the State Coat of Arms and the Innovation Prize. Since then the company has been given the privilege to use the official Austrian quality seal "The Austrian Mark of Quality" (Austria Gütezeichen).

1990
In order to market this technology worldwide we searched for a potential international partner and we found the Dutch based affiliation, Stork N.V. Today this group of more than 60 companies, with approximately 12,500 employees, is the world market leader in textile machinery. This cooperation eventually led to the merge and the company was renamed STORK STK.

1991
In 1991 Stork STK established a new site in Schaftenau near Kufstein. The new facility allowed for an area of 5.000 m² for both office and production space.

1992
Remarkable developments such as the scanner, film plotter and the revolutionary IMAGE CAD-System in the area of pattern processing and screen engraving were presented at the international textile machine exhibition in Hannover (ITMA). The revenues and headcount increased by 30%.

1994
The development of the 8 meter long laser engraver LEN6000 caused another stir in the textile industry - it was the first time ever that a 6 meter long carpet screen was produced digitally.

1999
At the ITMA 1999 in Paris the first multibeam Laser Exposer was presented. This new multibeam Laser Exposer achieved the highest possible quality standard at the fastest speed.

2002
The cooperation with BASF in the area of flexo printing led to another quantum leap. The new direct engraving system (BDE 4131) prevailed through its speed, flexibility, quality and reduced space requirements.

2003
Since the textile industry is concentrated in developing countries we developed alongside the high-end laser engraver the bestLEN the ecoLEN, a lower priced alternative.
In correspondence to the new corporate concept of a unified Stork GP, the company name was changed to Stork Prints Austria GmbH.